Pessimist
by electron1877
Summary: (AU) In a world where Azurda has never existed, Rex is depressed and he is more easily agitated and pushes everyone away. In addition, Rex now feels the complete opposite for Pyra. He now has much darker thoughts and ideals about the world and others. Is this boy really meant to be the Driver of the Aegis? [Reviews appreciated]
1. The Job

**Author's Note:**

 **I just would like to start out by saying that I just wanted to write an edgy/depressing story and I'm having a hard time incorporating it in a way that makes sense. As I mentioned in the Author's Note in my other serious story, I am not much of a fan of stories that just shove you into an AU that completely changes everything you know.**

 **I'm sorry if a lot of things don't make sense, but I'm obviously not a professional writer and this is just for fun. I wanted to write this story because I had this idea of "What if Rex hated Pyra?" and I wanted to write something different from all of the already present Pyra/Mytha x Rex love stories on this site. So have a story about a depressed/suicidal Rex.**

 **If you have any questions, feel free to send me a PM or mention it in a review. Thank you!**

* * *

Alrest. That is the name given to this miserable world. Why should anyone bother with trying to make something out of it? At least, that is what one boy thought.

Rex was a salvager. He never really had a place that he called home. Orphaned at a young age and gone into the salvaging business sometime later, Rex found his way to the Argentum Trade Guild. The place where he spent most of his time selling his findings and buying food and water was also the place that he resided. Everyone had believed that he lived on a Titan ship, but that was not true.

He had once mentioned that he was from Leftheria, and that had somehow gotten him summoned by the Chairman of the Trade Guild. Rex was from there, but he had run away about two years after his mother died. He didn't care where he went, he just ran away. After about another year on the run, he had learned to defend himself and manage living on his own. Rex was taken in by a group of salvagers after they found him as a stowaway on their ship. They taught him about salvaging and they raised him in their ways. Over time, Rex kept hiding on different salvager ships and the crews were usually very open. He eventually took to gambling and began to drink, despite being underage. After he stopped trying to get a free ride and went to go to the Trade Guild, his will to live only hung on by a thread.

Rex entered the room to see a large, green Nopon, who was decorated with many jewels and valuable items.

"Thank you for accepting summons!" it greeted the salvager. "I Bana, Chairman of Argentum Trade Guild."

"P-Pleased to make your acquaintance…" Rex nervously responded, analyzing his surroundings to see two other girls in the room with them.

"Me hear from Pupunin that friend is salvager of some renown. That being case, I have teensy weensy thing to ask of Rex!"

"… What is it?"

"Reward is 100,000 gold."

Rex's jaw dropped and his eyes widened.

 _A hundred thousand?!_

"Actually, that just the advance," Bana continued. "Another 100,000 provided upon completing job."

"So… 200,000 gold in total…?"

 _Is this guy serious?! There's no way this is real…_

"What is this job, then?" Rex asked.

"… You really have skills for this?" the chairman questioned.

The salvager shrugged, "Depends."

"Meh. Crew will explain the task. Bring them in."

One of the girls then opened the doors at the side and five figures began to emerge. Three of them looked human while the other two were some sort of beasts.

 _They must be Drivers, that black-haired guy and the Gormotti, and the white tiger and black… whatever must be Blades. Then that guy in the mask…_

"So… There's something that we want to haul up," the masked man began, interrupting Rex's thoughts. "There were some current shifts. It showed up in an uncharted area. But it's a long way down."

"Hey, the deeper the better," the salvager chuckled slightly.

"Bana offered to assemble team of veterans for this job," Bana interjected. "But this crew very picky. They want small elite team, and only from Leftheria. That when Bana have stroke of genius! Should hire Rex!"

"Heh… Surely there was someone better than me…"

Then, the Gormotti began to laugh, "A child salvager? Jin, don't tell me we're gonna have to hire some babysitters for this outing too."

Rex looked at her and raised an eyebrow. "And? You look as much like a kid as I do, missy!"

"At least I wouldn't wet myself at the promise of a measly hundred grand!"

"What're you tryin' to say?!"

Rex began to approach her, but he backed up as soon as the white tiger stepped forward towards him.

It cleared its throat and spoke politely, "Rex, was it? I implore you to excuse my lady's discourtesy."

The Gormotti huffed, "Dromarch! What have I told you about speaking for me? Shut your-"

"Drop it Nia," the black-haired man ordered. "Though, I do see your point… In any case… It should be easy enough to make sure…"

He then lunged for Rex, weapon drawn, and began to attack him. Rex dodged quickly and ran back before turning around and bringing out a metal beam, which he used to defend himself, to block the oncoming attacks. Their weapons clashed and held on for a moment as they stared each other down. The taller man then broke their weapons' hold and made the boy stumble back.

The salvager then stood in a fighting stance and yelled, "What the hell was that?!"

"Well, well, well…" the black-haired man muttered to himself.

"Malos!" the Gormotti, 'Nia', started. "What good is it, beating up a kid?"

"You said it yourself, didn't you?" 'Malos' began. "What if the kid's not up to it?"

"I said nothing of the sort!"

"You did think it though, right? And anyway, now we know. You'll do right enough. Though you don't look like a Driver… Where'd you learn those Arts?"

"As if I'd tell you!" Rex retorted.

"Easy now… Regardless, you've got some skill, I'll give you that. Guts, too. Kid, you better work hard."

Malos then sheathed his weapon and exited the room with the masked man, 'Jin', and the odd-looking Blade following him out. Nia groaned before reluctantly exiting the room with 'Dromarch' following, bowing slightly before leaving.

"Meh-meh-meh! Friends are such rowdy bunch!" Bana stated before pulling out a large sack and set it on the table. "Here is advance. Use to buy what gear you need, then go to dock on starboard! Bana has arranged excellent vessel for you there."

Rex holstered the beam and said, "Won't need to buy anything more. This suit is all I need…"

The chairman raised an eyebrow and asked, "Your rusty suit is all need?"

He half-chuckled, "Yeah… But I'll be there for the job."

Rex then left the chairman's office.

* * *

"Gawking at a boat? What are you, twelve?" Nia asked as she and Dromarch approached Rex, who was staring at the boat they would be setting off in. "Wait, maybe you are twelve."

"Whatever…" he sneered. "It doesn't matter how old I am. Besides, we're nearly the same age… And when we cast of- Uh… Actually, just stay right there."

Nia jumped back when she realized that she was standing inside a loop in a rope tied to the ship.

"Rex, we're heading out," one of the other salvagers on the job addressed him. "There's no one seeing you off, right?"

 _Well, there hasn't been anyone before…_

"You got night watch. Till then, rest up inside," the man continued.

"Gladly. Thanks," Rex responded before entering the ship.

The Drivers, Blades and masked man just watched the boy as he entered their ship.

* * *

Nighttime. It was Rex's turn to take the night watch on the ship as they approached their destination. He was all alone up on the high deck, then again, it felt no different from his little spot in Argentum. He did notice another black ship following them, but he didn't feel like it was important enough to report.

"Ugh, it's way too cold up here," a voice said with an accent slightly familiar to Rex.

He turned around to see the Gormotti Driver. "You-"

"I'll have you know I've got a name. It's Nia," she stated. "They've started boozin' below decks. You should join 'em."

"… Well, why aren't you there?"

She turned around. "It's not that I hate it, I just really don't need a headache right now."

"Yeah… Same…"

"So, kid…"

"Rex, if you would."

"Hmph. Okay, Rex. Why did you start salvaging in the first place?"

He looked back at her. "Why do you care?"

"Ah- Um… Well-"

Rex sighed, "Look, if you came here to idly chat, then move along. I'm no good with that stuff, nor do I honestly care."

Nia gritted her teeth. "Oh really? Then let me guess… You're salvaging just for the money! Just so you can find some relic that will make you rich beyond your wildest dreams, right? So you'll go deeper than anyone else and find bigger and rarer items!"

"Ah… Well, you're not too far off…"

They just stood in silence for a bit before the Driver broke it.

She asked, "D'you have parents?"

Rex's eye twitched for a moment. "No. Listen, I know what you're trying to do, but I already know that I am unpleasant to be around. So I think it'd be in both of our best interests if we just stopped now."

The Gormotti was taken aback by this initially. She looked at him, concerned, before she just shook her head.

"Right…" Nia almost whispered as she walked away.

* * *

Sometime later, they had arrived at their destination. Some 450 peds straight down was the target of their mission. It wasn't just the ship they were to explore, but the thing sleeping in it too.


	2. Encounter

This job was funded and led by three mysterious Drivers. Rex always had a mild interest in Drivers and Blades. He was slightly envious of their power, skill and bonds, believing that being what they are gave them a sincere sense of purpose. They were a strange bunch, his employers. Rex found Malos' rather arrogant personality somewhat annoying. Nia was obnoxious and slightly aggressive, but he was intrigued as to why she was with these other two. And then Jin. Rex was intrigued by him. Despite barely speaking a word around him, he just seemed to radiate power and strength.

Rex was not the only salvager hired for this mission, some of them he had worked with on prior weapon salvaging missions. They were the ones who had taught him the Salvager's Code. While he was grateful of their advice, Rex felt that the Salvager's Code was more like guidelines than a set of rules. He decided to keep to himself as they began to work.

Some time had passed and the salvage team had brought up the sunken ship and began to investigate it. Rex went with the three Drivers, and when they encountered a large door.

"Jin check this out," Malos began. "There it is. Addam's crest."

Rex looked confused. "'Addam's… crest'? What does that mean?"

"You," Jin stated, surprising Rex for a moment. "Open this door."

The salvager looked at the masked man with suspicion. "Why me?"

"This door will only open to one of you people."

"One of me? What do you mean?"

"Hurry up and do it!" Malos barked. "We're not paying you to ask dumb questions!"

"What the hell…?" Rex growled angrily before he began to approach the door.

He began to examine to door.

Of course there's no door handle… or button, or- Hey…

He cut himself off as he noticed the large seal on the door. Rex slowly reached out his hand and took a step back when it began to glow. The door then opened up with a surge of power rushing out. Rex stepped to the side and motioned his hand for the others to go.

"There you are…" he said with a sarcastic tone.

"Open that door too," Jin said.

Rex blinked and looked back down the hallway that had just opened up, now seeing another door at the end. He sighed and made his way to go open up the second door. With another glowing seal to open the door, Rex began to continue on through the next hallway. The Drivers cautiously began to follow him. After a while, he entered a large room and saw something rather strange.

"What… the hell…?" he quietly asked himself as he began to walk closer to the center of the room.

There in the ground was a sword, red with parts that were glowing green. But the really strange thing was what was behind the sword.

A… A girl?

Sealed in a glass capsule of sorts, was a girl. Her clothes and her hair were as red as the sword before her. She appeared to be sleeping, and Rex was surprised to see that she had abnormally large breasts for someone of her stature, to say the least. But what really intrigued him was the green, glowing crystal on her chest. Rex jumped in surprise as the sword's own green crystal began to glow very brightly. He couldn't explain why, but he could have sworn that he heard a heartbeat coming from the crystal.

Meanwhile, the Drivers quietly entered the room without Rex knowing.

"Look," Malos whispered, indicating the scene before them.

"Yes. No mistaking it," Jin whispered. "That's the Aegis."

Nia looked confused and surprised. "The… Aegis…?"

Without thinking, Rex reached out his hand to touch the sword.

Noticing this, Malos yelled, "Hey, brat! Don't even think about touching that!"

Snapping out of his trance, Rex took a step back after he had made contact with the sword, causing it to shine even brighter. Jin quickly rushed forward and drew his katana, stabbing him in the back and piercing his heart. Rex froze while he slowly looked down at the tip of the blood-stained katana sticking out of his chest.

"Don't take it personally," the masked man stated. "It's an act of mercy. At least you won't be alive to see what's coming."

Jin removed his weapon from his body just before Rex fell to the ground. In one swift motion, he slashed with his katana once more, shattering the red sword.

"Jin!" Nia exclaimed. "Why did you kill him?! What did Rex ever do to you?!"

No response. The masked man sheathed his blade after flicking the blood off of it and strode out of the room.

"Let's ship out the Aegis," Malos ordered. "Nia, call the Monoceros!"

Nia just stood there, clenching her fists as she watched Jin slowly walk away. Rex's world began to fade to black.

* * *

It was black no more. He slowly opened his eyes from hearing the sound of a bell in the distance. Rex slowly sat up and found himself in a lush field, a gentle breeze rustling the grass. He then stood up and looked around him. There were trees and grass as far as the eye could see, more than he had ever seen in ten years. There was also a hill nearby with a single tree at the top. There was a lone figure there with a hand on the tree.

Rex cautiously began to approach the figure. Once he was closer, he noticed that it was the girl with red hair and clothes from before. She was facing away from him so he slowly began to walk around her.

"Um… Hello…?" he called out cautiously as he slowly approached her.

"… It's such a mournful sound…" she said, still facing away from him.

The bell was still going off. It did sound rather eerie and empty.

"It hasn't stopped," the girl continued. "Not… Not in all these years."

"You mean the bell, right?" Rex asked.

He then began to approach her again.

"Where are we?"

"This is… Elysium. The land where, long ago, mankind lived in harmony with their creator."

Yeah, like that could ever happen…

"It's where… 'We' were born," she said.

Rex walked up next to her and saw what she was able to see. There was a massive lake of water not too far from them with even more vegetation dominating the land. He then turned to look at her. A moment after, she looked at him and smiled. She was slightly taller than him. Rex began to focus on the large, green, glowing crystal on her chest.

"… Is that a Core Crystal?" he began. "… You're a Blade, right?"

The girl nodded and said, "My name is Pyra."

Rex blinked for a moment before saying, "Oh! I'm-"

"I know you. You're Rex, right?" she interrupted him.

He froze and slightly took a step back.

"How did you know my name?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

I don't trust her. That smile… She's up to something. I'm sure of it.

"Just now, when we came into contact…" Pyra answered.

"Wait, what? Just now?"

Rex began to realize the situation he was in, turning away to see his surroundings again.

"Listen, I don't even know how I got here…" he said.

Pyra's smile began to fade. She turned away from him, a pained look in her eye.

"You were… killed," she said quietly. "Stabbed through the heart by Jin."

Rex turned to face her again.

"Jin? … Through the…?"

A memory of the masked man rushing behind him, piercing his body with his weapon, flashed into his mind. He covered his mouth with his hands.

Pyra looked sad. "I know this must sound-"

Rex began to laugh, raising his fist in the air with a huge grin. Pyra jumped in surprise when she saw his reaction. He fell down and began to roll down the hill a bit, cackling madly.

"FINALLY!" he yelled. "IT'S ABOUT BLOODY TIME!"

The Blade looked down at him in horror to see that he was actually happy to be dead. She gulped before she slowly began to approach him. Rex had stopped rolling and was now on his back, wiping away his tears as his shoulders bobbed with laughter. His laughter began to subside as he began to breathe more heavily. He then sat up and looked at the approaching Blade.

"So, why are you here? You dead, too?" Rex asked smiling.

Pyra stopped where she was. She had never thought, let alone seen, anyone could want death this much.

"Uh… no…" she started quietly. "B-… But I do… have a request…"

"Oh? What?" he inquired, composing himself.

Pyra began to think to herself. Is this all an act? Does he really envy death that much? … I guess I should…

"Can you… take me to… Elysium?" she asked him.

Rex's smile faded. "Elysium? But… didn't you just say that we're IN Elysium?"

"This world is merely a memory. An ancient, half-forgotten memory of what once was. The real Elysium lies in your world… atop the World Tree that rises from the heart of Alrest."

"… So this is just an illusion? A-And anyway, I'm dead. Finally," Rex said, muttering the last part. "How would I even be able to help you?"

"I will give you… half of my life force. That way… you can be revived…"

"I'm good."

Pyra blinked and looked up at him. "W-What?"

"I'm good. I'll just stay dead, thanks. You'll have to get someone else to take you," Rex stated as the laid back down in the grass.

The Blade was speechless. "B-But why wouldn't you want to live again? You're pretty young so you would have a long life ahead of you!"

"Oh believe me, I'm good…" he muttered.

"… What about your friends? Y-Your family?!"

"Yeah, like I have those..."

Rex sat up again.

"… You would get to be my Driver, Rex! You, Driver of the Aegis!"

He raised an eyebrow and stood up. "I would get to be a Driver…?"

Pyra smiled, hoping that she may have convinced him. "Yes! Together we would be able to-"

"Tempting, but I'll pass," he interrupted, shaking his head.

Her smile disappeared. There was an air of silence between the two of them for a moment before Pyra broke it.

"What… What happened to you?" she asked nervously. "Why do you not want to live…?"

Rex shook his head and giggled slightly. She could visibly tell that he was angry.

"You want to know, huh?" he began. "You really want to know that I have left absolutely nothing behind in Alrest? How I've never had anyone live long enough to truly care for me?! My life in Alrest was miserable! I barely have a place to stay, besides a few crates on one of the lower decks of the Trade Guild. I have nothing to live for! No one to live for either! I purposely wear the most rusty and old salvaging equipment, hoping that one day it'll fail and I'll drown! I just want to go out in some way that I don't expect it…"

Pyra looked at the boy in horror. She placed her hands on her chest as he screamed at her about his problems.

"I once had this dream, that a Titan let me live on his back as I went out salvaging. That would be nice. Then, SOMEONE would actually care for me…"

Rex looked down and breathed heavily, tears forming in his eyes. Pyra was incredibly concerned for him. She then made a decision.

"Rex," she began. "I want you to take me to Elysium."

He looked up at her incredulously. "Are you serious? I said no!"

"… Rex, I want to help you. I'll be your friend, if you want."

"No offense, but I just don't care. Just leave me here. At least now I'm not a burden to anyone…"

Pyra frowned. She then marched up to him and grabbed his wrist.

"I'm sorry, but please try," she said before she placed his hand on her Core Crystal.

"W-WHAT?! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" Rex screamed, mildly blushing as he tried to resist her grasp before green light enveloped them both.

* * *

Rex's body was lying limp in the room before it suddenly rose so that he was standing. It glowed with green light as a red sword, exactly the same as the one from before, formed in his hand. He opened his eyes and looked down at his chest. There was part of the Core Crystal, shaped like an 'X', right where he had been stabbed. He looked around and realized where exactly he was.

Rex then gritted his teeth as the sword ignited.

"Oh, that bitch…" he growled, the sword's flames growing in size and intensity. "I'll take her to Elysium alright… Then I'll kill her!"


	3. The Journey Begins

On the top deck of the ship, Malos was carrying the case with Pyra with his Blade next to him and Nia and Dromarch following behind. Jin had left that room long before Malos began to retrieve the Aegis. Nia appeared to be a bit sad as the rain lightly fell all around them.

"Nia. End them," Malos said.

Nia looked up in confusion. "End? Like, what?"

"The price for their lives has already been paid in full. Now that we have finally obtained the Aegis… The fewer living souls know about it, the better."

Her eyes slowly widened in fear as she realized what he meant.

"I-I can't do that!" Nia exclaimed as she stood in place. "These people haven't done anything wrong!"

Malos stopped and slowly turned around and saying, "I don't understand you. Now, now. Have you forgotten why you came here to begin with Nia?"

"N-No, but…" she nervously began to back up a bit.

"Oh, for the love of…" he muttered in frustration. "Fine. I'll handle it myself."

Malos then began to walk back, past the other Driver and her Blade. All of a sudden, the case ignited. Nia jumped back in surprise.

"Uck…! What the…?!" Malos yelled in surprise as he threw the case off his shoulder.

The case cluttered as it finally slid to a stop, still in flames despite the rain. Then a massive pillar of flames rose up from the case as what seemed to be a ball of fire flying out of it. The fire ball flew until it landed on top of the entrance to the lower decks. As the flames and the smoke subsided, there stood Pyra, part of her Core Crystal missing.

The ship then began to rumble. Part of the floor near the entrance began to glow red as a muffled scream could be heard. Then the ground exploded into another pillar of flames. As the flames disappeared, there was a figure up high. It was Rex. He then fell back down onto the top deck, holding a sword and screaming. He stopped screaming as he gritted his teeth from feeling the pain of landing from so high up.

Nia blinked as she looked at the scene before her.

"Rex?!" she yelled in disbelief.

He breathed heavily. He obviously was not expecting to be killed, resurrected, have part of a Core Crystal put in his chest and smash a hole through a deck within twenty minutes, let alone today.

"You!" Malos yelled in disbelief. "And that sword. Can't be!"

"Pyra!" Rex called out.

"Here!" she responded, looking down at Malos and Jin.

He stood up and slowly turned around to face her.

"Fuck… you…!"

Pyra's eyes widened in surprise. She knew that it would take some time for her to teach Rex why he should live, but her hopes of helping him almost faded when she saw him look at her with pure rage.

"R-Rex…" she started. "We should get out of he-"

"Don't tell me what to do!" Rex snapped, quieting Pyra. "Why the hell did you bring me back?!"

"… I… I wanted…" the Aegis tried to put words together to say what she wanted to say. "I can help you, Rex. I want to-"

"Don't need it," he said coldly.

Meanwhile, the other Drivers and salvagers just watched them in confusion.

Then Malos muttered, "Well, while they're at it…"

He then charged forward as he pulled out his weapon. His sights were on Rex, who had his back turned to him. Pyra's eyes widened as she noticed this, and she jumped down and ran up to Rex. She then pulled the sword out of his hands and used it to block Malos's attack. Rex looked at her with a mix of confusion and hatred as she stood in front of him defensively. Malos began to strike again and again, Pyra blocking them with her own swift movements.

"You're pretty sharp for someone who's only just woken up," he sneered. "Takes me back to 500 years ago… What's the deal with that appearance?"

Their swords struck and held in place, each of them pushing with all their might.

"I'm guessing your goal is Elysium…" he added.

"That…" she started. "Is our dream!"

"Then I have no choice but to stop you!"

His hands then began to glow with purple energy just as Pyra jumped out of the way, dragging Rex away from his attack. Rex then freed himself of her grasp and took back the sword from her.

"You…" Malos muttered before he charged at the boy.

Rex instinctively defended himself and blocked the attack. They then began to exchange blows with their weapons while a light beam connected itself between the salvager and his Blade.

Rex had little to no idea why he was fighting. It might have been just his instincts, but it also could have been because many of the people who had cared for him at some point, the other salvagers, were watching his with concern.

 _What are they thinking? What am I doing?! Why is this guy trying to kill me? Well, it could be the same reason that Jin killed me, but…_

"Give it a rest, Malos!" Nia yelled. "Can't you see he's just a child?!"

"A child?" he began to respond. "Don't make me laugh! This kid… had made himself the Aegis's Driver!"

Malos charged again with even more ferocity which Rex returned with an equal amount.

"The Aegis's… Driver?" Nia muttered to herself. "Rex is…?"

The two continued to clash weapons, the boy attacking in a reckless manner. He swung with much force, but he left himself wide open for Malos to kick him away. Rex flew back and landed hard on the metal surface. Malos then tossed his sword up, which his Blade caught and launched a wave of energy at Rex. Just before it hit him, Pyra quickly stood in front of Rex and blocked the attack with a large energy shield. The whole ship began to rumble, many of the other salvager taking a step back.

Rex just looked up at her, confused. "Why?"

She slowly glanced back to him, keeping up the energy shield. "Please, Rex… Come with me. I can show you how to make Alrest better. Together, we can save the world."

He blinked. _Make the world… better? … Is that even possible?_

Rex then groaned as he stood up and muttered, "Fine. I'll take you to Elysium…"

A small smile crossed Pyra's face as she let down the shield.

"Everybody, go, now!" Rex called out to the salvagers.

They quickly began to run back into the ship they had arrived in. Malos's Blade threw his weapon back to his Driver, who began to charge it up to attack the fleeing salvagers. Rex then sent a fireball in his direction from his sword, which he deflected easily. As the smoke from the deflection cleared, he saw Rex and Pyra jumping up high, each of them holding the ignited sword.

"Burning Sword!" they yelled in unison as a massive flame engulfed the three of them.

Once that smoke had cleared, many of the onlookers were surprised to see Malos easily blocking their attack.

"You brat," he muttered. "How can a nobody like you…?! … Ah. But those eyes-"

Suddenly, Rex punched Malos in the face, causing him to flinch. Taking advantage of this moment, he motioned Pyra to follow him as he began to run back to the ship. Malos shook his head and focused on the newly made Driver of the Aegis.

"Don't get cocky, you little shit!" he screamed as he ran after him.

"Dromarch!" Nia called.

"Understood," her Blade responded as she climbed onto his back before running after them.

As the two began to approach, Dromarch let out a roar which stopped Malos in his tracks as his Blade blocked it with an energy shield. Nia and Dromarch stood in between them and Rex and Pyra.

"Get out of the way, Nia!" Malos shouted with fury. "Have you gone mad?!"

"You're the one who's off your nut, wailing on a child!" she retorted.

"Nia… I don't think you quite comprehend your position."

"I get it, but-"

"You're starting to piss me off!"

Meanwhile, Rex and the Aegis made their way onto the ship after launching another fireball at Malos.

"Let's get out of here!" Rex called out to the other salvagers.

They all looked at him with uncertainty.

"Rex, we can't just leave our employers behind," one of them said.

"Ugh! Look, I'll… I'll give you all my share!"

"What? Split up your measly 5,000 gold?! You've got to be joking!"

"5,000? That's all you guys are getting? I got 100,000 gold, and that was just the advance!"

Slowly, one by one they turned to look at him with surprise and envy.

"… Yeah, if they're that unfair, let's leave them on that wreck! Set off, lads! Seal the doors!"

Suddenly, Nia and Dromarch jumped into the ship just before the doors closed.

"They also planned to kill you all once you were done!" Nia added as she hopped off her Blade.

Some of them turned as white as a sheet. They initially thought that she was about to slaughter the lot of them, but they felt more relieved when they remembered that she went against them as well. Most of the more experienced salvagers just continued on since it wasn't the first time they were treated like they were expendable. Within a few moments, the Monoceros set off quickly leaving Malos, his Blade and Jin behind.

"Dammit! They gave us the slip…" Malos yelled in frustration before turning to the masked man. "Why the hell didn't you do anything to stop them?!"

"The Aegis is awakened…" Jin began. "That's enough for now. I'll have Akhos hunt them down."

"… And get our ship back and US off this thing!" the man in black added with anger.

* * *

"Alright, we're heading back to Argentum," the one steering the ship said.

"Wait!" Nia said. "Take us to the nearest Titan before you all go! Around this time it would probably be Gormott…"

"Us too!" Pyra added.

"US TOO?!" Rex asked incredulously.

"We should go somewhere else, away from this ship," the Aegis started. "We should try to make them think that we did get off Argentum while we actually got off at Gormott."

"… Yeah, that's basically the same thing that I was thinking," Nia said, smirking. "Maybe we should go together? You know, strength in numbers?"

"… I think that would be alright. Rex…?"

The boy groaned, "Oh… Now THEY are coming TOO?! Fine. Just fine! I need a minute…"

Rex then stormed off leaving everyone watching him with concern. Pyra saw him grit his teeth and clench his fists which made her frown. She didn't know why, but seeing him like this just made her feel sad.

"What's his problem?" Nia asked her.

"I… I'm not sure…" Pyra replied quietly.

"Well, anyway…" the man steering the ship said. "To Gormott…!"


	4. Wanted

**Author's Note:**

 **I don't know if I made it clear (probably didn't), but I'm not suggesting that Rex's personality completely changed without Azurda. Having him not exist in this AU was just an extra thing that I added to this story to create a different storyline, sort of…**

 **I will explain Rex's feelings and personality later in the story. While this is just meant to be an edgy story, I want to make it work so I'll show some sort of character development eventually.**

 **As I said before, if you have any questions, feel free to send me a PM or mention it in a review. Thank you!**

* * *

"There it is," Nia began. "Torigoth."

They had arrived in Gormott several hours before. The other salvagers had dropped them off in a forest around the Titan's belly before Rex had distributed most of his money between them. He was particularly annoyed to have lost so much money at once.

"What a wonderful view," Pyra said quietly as she marveled at the sight before them.

The city of Torigoth appeared to be surrounded by trees and hills. There appeared to be mountains in the distance, but it was actually the Titan's neck.

"I'll accompany you as the city. After that, I'm afraid you're on your own," Nia told them.

"OK. Whatever. Let's just go," Rex said as he began to make his way, scowling.

Pyra looked at him with concern as she gingerly followed him. Nia and Dromarch walked beside them as they eventually entered the city.

"It hasn't changed a bit," Nia murmured.

"Nia?" the Aegis asked.

"It's nothing. OK then. I'll show you to an inn. Then I'm out of here."

"It's about time…" Rex said quietly.

However, Nia heard this. "What was that?!"

The Gormotti marched up so that she was walking next to him.

"Did you say something?!"

Rex sighed, looking straight ahead, "You heard me, obviously…"

"Yeah, w-well… What did you mean by that?!"

"Why don't you ask her?"

Rex pointed to a wanted poster with extreme similarity to her. Nia turned to look at the poster and screamed.

"What the bloody hell is this? Don't tell me this is meant to be ME?!"

"A remarkable likeness to say the least…" Dromarch commented.

"Oi, did you say something?" Nia growled, eyes glowing with anger as she turned to her Blade.

"Ah, er, no. I fear they may have conflated our countenances, my lady. How very awful."

Out of frustration, Nia ripped up the poster into a million pieces. The salvager just continued on walking into the city. It was sometime before they came across a crowd.

"Fie! Who has the courage to heed the Empire's call?" a man in a dark uniform with a single-spiked helmet announced. "Your strong heart today will build a strong Mor Ardain tomorrow!"

Rex stopped to hear what he was saying. The Gormotti and the two Blades managed to catch up to him.

"Of course, you get more than a salary!" the man continued. "Pension and benefits are included! Distinguish yourself and you could even join the nobility! For the glory of the Ardainian Empire and His Majesty Emperor Niall! Come now! Who wants to be the hero of tomorrow?!"

"… The hell is that?" Rex asked.

"Driver recruitment," Nia responded.

"Huh. Alright. Let's keep going."

Again, he took off ahead of the others. The other Driver and her Blade reluctantly began to follow him. However, Pyra stayed behind to watch someone resonate with a Core Crystal and become a Driver.

"Pyra, come on! You want to get to Elysium, don't you?!" Rex called out, noticing that she wasn't following him.

She blinked and shook her head before she ran to catch up with the others.

"Say, Pyra?" Rex started.

"Yes?" Her face brightened to have him address her without being negative.

"Do you even know how to get to Elysium?"

Pyra looked down as she walked and thought for a moment. "Um… I…"

"You don't know."

"N-No! I do! It's just I don't remember if there's anything special that we need to do. We just need to go up the World Tree."

"Go up the World Tree? That's gonna take forever! Not to mention how we're supposed to even get there."

"We could probably rent a ship and-"

"Oh, RENT a ship! Of course! Because that's the cheapest thing ever! Right after I just gave up like all my money! Speaking of, why the hell didn't you suggest that those guys take us straight there?!"

She was silent for a moment, nervous of how Rex would react to her response.

"… I… didn't think of it…"

"Of course you didn't. Because you're only focused on getting there, not how we're getting there. And you didn't think of what I would have to do just to get you there because you're so selfish that you-"

"I-I'm not being selfish! Rex, you d-!"

"Then why did you bring me back?!" Rex yelled at her, stopping and turning around to face her.

Pyra froze. Nia and Dromarch silently began to distance themselves from the other two, not wanting to get involved.

"Why did you bring me back?" he repeated. "I'll tell you why… You just needed someone to get to Elysium so you picked the first guy you saw: me! And here I am, without a want or need to be here!"

The Aegis had her hands on her chest as she took a small step back.

"Now, Rex," Dromarch began. "I'm sure that she was doing-"

"Stay out of this!" the salvager snapped, quieting the Blade.

Nia then spoke up, "H-Hey! He was only trying to help!"

Before he or anyone else could respond, they were suddenly surrounded by a bunch of guys like from earlier, Ardainian soldiers.

"Halt! Nobody move!" one of them called out, the once with the tallest helmet.

"Hey, what's going on?" Rex asked, agitated.

"That fugitive in your company is an enemy of the state! A member of Torna!"

 _A member of Tor- Oh! Nia…_

"It's her alright," the captain continued. "Gormotti Driver, white beast-form Blade. She looks exactly like the wanted poster!"

"What wanted poster…?" the boy cautiously asked.

"See for yourself!"

The captain pulled out a wanted poster that was identical to the one that Nia had ripped up earlier.

"Yeah, it's pretty accur-"

"Oi, watch it!" Nia piped up.

"Ah, uh, I mean," Rex began to stammer. "It's VERY accurate!"

"EXCUSE ME?!"

"Forget it! We've got no time for this."

"Now as for you… You look like a Driver too. Registration number?" the captain demanded.

"5-3-9…?"

"Knock it off, you fool. All new Drivers must register with Indol! No number means you must be an illegal, unregistered Driver!"

"I literally became a Driver about ten hours ago!"

"Regardless, you're coming with me! We'll see what the consul has to say about this!"

The Drivers and Blades got ready to fight.

Nia then muttered, "Rex, Dromarch and I are gonna make our move. Get ready to run."

"Sounds like a plan…"

"Rex!" Pyra spoke up. "We're not leaving without them!"

Her Driver then looked up at her with a look that said both ' _What the hell?_ ' and ' _Why?_ ' making her feel slightly uncomfortable.

"This is our problem, not yours," the Gormotti said.

"He probably wants to arrest all of us so it's kind of our problem too," Pyra said.

"Alright, we go on three. We'll go left, you go right."

Rex groaned, "Ugh! Fine…"

"Let's do this!"

"Y-You're going to resist? Seriously?" the captain nervously yelled as he and the others backed up a bit.

"One… two…"

"A-All right, men! We've got them outnu-"

"THREE!" Rex screamed as he rushed forward.

He slashed the captain and the two next to him with Pyra's sword and sent them flying back. Rex then turned around expecting to see the others fighting as well, but they just looked at him incredulously for attacking before the call. Not to mention how brutal his attack was. The large openings on the soldiers' armor didn't show any sign of him even trying to hold back. Quietly, the captain slowly sat up and raised his weapon at the boy who just attacked him.

"Heh… Heh… Think you can take me…?!" he cackled as he fired.

Rex suddenly lurched forward from the initial force and pain from being shot in the back.

"GAH! FUCK!" he cried out in pain.

He stumbled forward while Nia and Dromarch began to fight the other soldiers. Rex tried to stabilize himself by stabbing the sword into the ground and leaning on it.

Pyra hurried over to him, slightly grimacing. "Rex!"

"That… That's it!"

The salvager then pulled the weapon out of the ground and spun around to face the downed soldier. He then lunged for him. Rex thrusted the red sword into the captain's chest, falling to his knees and breathing heavily.

"AAGH! D-Don't… forget me…" the captain managed to say as his voice faded.

The Aegis froze, her eyes widening at what she just saw.

 _Did… Did Rex just…? Oh Architect…_

The salvager pulled out the sword, now covered in even more red, and fell back onto his bottom. He slowly began to feel where on his back he was shot, wincing and yelping in pain when he found it.

 _Is he really… Is he really my new Driver? Does he… usually do things like this…?_

Meanwhile, Nia and Dromarch were managing to stop the Ardainian soldiers easily.

"Th-They're so strong!" one of them shouted. "Such strength… They're Drivers, all right!"

"C'mon! Now!" Nia called out, signaling their leave.

Rex used the sword again to help himself stand up while Pyra stood for a moment. He then began to follow the Gormotti and her Blade, quickly out of breath, before a massive, blue wall of fire blocked their escape route.

"Wha-?!" Nia jumped back in surprise, Dromarch and Rex stopping just behind her.

"Such a commotion," a voice spoke gently.

They turned around to see a woman in a shining, blue dress with similar blue hair approach them. Her hair flickered about at the ends as though it were an actual flame. She wielded two large swords with a smaller dagger holstered on her belt.

"Just when I thought I could enjoy a little peace and quiet."

When she got much closer, the group was able to see that her eyes were closed. Pyra's pupils shrank as though she knew who this person was.

"L-Lady Brighid!" a soldier stuttered, running over to be near her.

"… What? Is she a Blade? Doesn't… she need a Driver?" Rex managed to say, slightly feeling better after Nia touched him briefly.

"My Driver is otherwise engaged at present. I am here alone," the woman, Brighid, responded.

"No… Driver? But don't you-?"

The soldier then spoke up, "L-Lady Brighid is the 'Jewel of Mor Ardain'! The strongest Blade in the Empire! Even alone, she's more than a match for you!"

 _Strongest Blade in the Empire? We should get out of here…_ Rex thought.

"Lady Brighid, these miscreants are terrorists working for Torna," the soldier began to inform her. "A-Also that boy killed three of ours, i-including Captain Padraig!"

Brighid gritted her teeth when she noticed the three dead soldiers on the ground.

"Please lend me your power to bring them to justice!" he asked, bowing slightly.

"Torna?" the lone Blade muttered while she thought over the party in question.

 _A Gormotti Driver and a beast-form Blade, and a… Hm? A boy? And his Blade…_

She gasped slightly when she saw Pyra, who looked rather worried and slightly in pain.

"That emerald Core Crystal… Could it really be true?" the 'Jewel of Mor Ardain' whispered to herself at first before ordering. "Well, well. Sergeant, you are not to kill them. Take these ones in alive."

Brighid got into a fighting stance while the soldier informed the others, "Roger! Men, bring the you-know-what!"

The other two soldiers nodded and ran off, leaving a soldier and a Driverless Blade to fight two Drivers and two other Blades. The lone Blade launched a wave of fire at the group with a swing of a sword. Rex grimaced as he raised the red, blood-stained sword and launched his own wave of fire, blocking the other one. Fortunately, in terms of appearances, the blood on the sword quickly evaporated. Both sides braced themselves as the two attacks exploded on impact. When the smoke cleared, Brighid stood tall and unfazed, unlike her current ally.

Rex raised an eyebrow to this. "Damn… She's good…"

"She's so… strong," Pyra commented.

"Stop yammering!" Nia called out. "Just get her!"

The Gormotti and her Blade jumped up high and lunged for Brighid. However, before they were able to land a hit on their target, a large net was launched from behind her and captured the white beast-form Blade.

Nia looked back at her Blade. "Dromarch!"

Suddenly, another net was launched and was used to capture her. The two fell to the ground with a thud. They initially began to struggle in the large, yellow nets to no avail. The soldiers, who had left earlier, returned after shutting down the device they used to launch the nets.

The soldier laughed, "This is an ether net! Let's see you use your precious Arts when you can't draw ether from the atmosphere!"

"Even Blades have weaknesses. This is one such weakness," Brighid added. "Without the flow of ether, Blades are quite useless."

Nia turned her head to face the salvager. "Get outta here, Rex! Save yourself!"

"… If you say so," Rex stated, Pyra slightly groaning in frustration.

"Rex… We're not leaving without you guys!" the Aegis muttered before calling out to their most recent allies.

"You've got your own mission!" the Gormotti said. "Just move it!"

"Yeah, but-"

"No buts! GO!"

"C'mon," Rex took Pyra's hand and tugged slightly. "Let's go while we have the chance."

"You won't escape," Brighid said before she sent out a wall of flame.

The wall eventually surrounded Rex and Pyra and caused them to collapse from the intense heat of the blue flames, the former being affected much more.

"Ugh… Damn…" he muttered.

Suddenly, a blue object that resembled a fish came soaring through the fire. It continued on until it hit a water pipe, where it detonated and water began to pour out. Unfortunately, Brighid was standing underneath said pipe and was now getting soaked.

"Ugh, water?!" she yelled in frustration.

As she and the area continued to get drenched, the flames seemed to die down including the flames of the wall surrounding the Aegis and her Driver. Seeing an opportunity to attack, Rex raised the sword again while Pyra reluctantly held onto the sword as well.

"Now!" Rex called out.

The sword ignited before the two yelled in unison, "BURNING SWORD!"

They swung the weapon and sent a massive fireball towards the Driverless Blade and the soldier. While the two were recovering from the attack, Rex decided to capitalize on this moment. Both Rex and Pyra began to run away.

"Don't let them escape! Get after them!" the soldier called out to the others.

Nia smiled and muttered, "That's right, Rex… Run, and never look back."

"To pull that off despite all this water…" Brighid whispered to herself in admiration of what had just transpired as soldiers ran past her. "So the legends of the Aegis were real."

* * *

Rex and Pyra were running along a wooden path. They were both breathing pretty heavily before they slowed down slightly.

"Hey hey!" a voice called out to them, causing them to stop and turn around.

Suddenly, part of a wall opens up and a Nopon poked his head out.

"This way, friends, come this way!" it gestured for them to follow. "Tora help you escape!"

"Who the hell are you?" Rex asked.

"Quick, no time for explain!"

"Uh, no. I-"

"Come on, Rex," Pyra said while pulling him as she followed the Nopon.

It then closed the door entirely and later left the Ardainian soldiers with no real evidence to find them.

"Thanks. You saved us," she said smiling.

"Yeah… Why though?" Rex asked.

"No reason…" the Nopon stated.

"… No reason?"

"Sorry, that not true. Truth is, Tora not like those big bully soldiers. Was thinking to test out shiny new Boom Biter on big bullies… That's when Tora see friends running from them. Boom Biter missed and hit water pipe, but results not so bad, hey?"

"So, that was you?" the salvager asked.

"That right."

"And you're Tora?" Pyra began. "I'm Pyra, and this is Rex."

"Good to meeting! Mehehe…"

"Uh… What was that for?" Rex asked nervously.

"Ah… Actually, Tora have other reason for save you."

"Which is…?"

"Don't worry. Explain everything when get to house of Tora! This way!"

Then the Nopon led the Driver and the Aegis to his house.


	5. Artificial Problems

**Author's Note:**

 **Sorry for the wait. I've been working on other stories as well. This chapter isn't exactly great, but I hope that the next one will be significantly better.**

* * *

The boy and the Blade followed the Nopon into what seemed like an underground hole.

"You live… down here?" Rex asked.

"This just back door," Tora replied. "Front entrance over there."

 _Ah. So this must be built on a hillside. It's nice…_

The salvager looked down and was greeted with a familiar sight. Below them was the Cloud Sea, which he was able to see just as clearly from his spot in Argentum.

Tora noticed him looking at it. "Nice view, eh? Tora likes to just sit and watch Cloud Sea sometimes."

"Yeah, same…" Rex added.

"You have a wonderful home," Pyra commented.

The Nopon chuckled to himself before saying, "Anyway, um… Rex-Rex…"

The boy raised an eyebrow. "Yes…?"

"Tora explain other reason I help you. You see… Tora always wanted to make Driver friends."

Rex gritted his teeth before nervously replying, "Uh… I'm afraid I'm probably not the best person to talk to about that kind of- ARG!"

The salvager fell to his knees as he felt another wave of pain wash over him. Pyra almost mimicked him, but she remained standing. She noticed the blood still trickling down his back.

"Tora, could you bring some medical supplies?" she asked him, hiding her own pain.

"I will see what Tora have!" the Nopon said before running off to retrieve a first aid kit.

"I'm fine, Pyra. I'm just not too used to being… shot in the back… Heh…" Rex said.

The Aegis was silent for a moment before she asked, "Um… Why did you kill those soldiers?"

He turned to face her. "How else could I have stopped them from arresting us? Critically injure them? If I had done that, then we would just have to see them again another day… I could have either let them take us in or kill them. If that one hadn't shot me I would have tried to finish off the rest."

"H-How can you talk about ending others' lives so casually?"

"I dunno. I suppose I'm just used to it now…"

"… How are you used t-?"

"Got it!" Tora announced as he arrived with the medical supplies.

Pyra took them from him and crouched down next to Rex and began to treat his wound. The salvager was unsure how to react as she patched him up when he wasn't grimacing. After about a minute, she was done. Rex then stood up and noticed her own wound in her back.

"Y-You're injured too!" he exclaimed. "When did you get shot? Was it Brighid's flames?"

"I'm fine…" she tried to say.

"Sure you are," he said sarcastically. "Let me help you."

It was now Rex's turn to treat her wound on her back. Pyra smiled idly as he tended to her.

"There. That should do it," Rex stated as he finished bandaging her wound.

* * *

Some time had passed since the boy and the Blade mended each other's wounds. They had better introduced themselves, reluctantly, to their host, and they explained their goal of reaching Elysium. Tora was so excited to hear this that he decided to join them on their journey. Then Pyra said that they should try to save Nia and Dromarch, mainly because she didn't particularly want to be with her Driver alone. Rex, however, saw no point in rescuing them.

"Why should we save them? We want to get to Elysium, right? By going out of our way to save a Driver and a Blade that we hardly know, it'll just waste our time!"

"Rex, we don't necessarily have a time limit of when we can get there…" Pyra tried to say. "There's no reason to rush it…"

"Well, maybe there is! I for one would like to get it over and done with quickly!"

"Um… Why is that…?"

Rex was silent for a moment. Tora and Pyra stared at him in anticipation.

"I-It doesn't matter. Let's get them then. If it'll shut you up…" he said finally, muttering the last bit.

* * *

They had heard that Nia and Dromarch were to be executed after asking around. Rex was initially relieved because that meant that they could continue their journey to Elysium. Much to his dismay, Pyra wanted to investigate and see if the rumors were true. Before they set off to look for them, Tora wanted to show them his latest creation. After revealing his 'artificial Blade', he admitted that he still needed parts to complete it and that he was broke.

"So you're asking for a loan?" Rex asked skeptically.

"Uh, not… loan," Tora nervously chuckled. "Um, closer to… generous… donation!"

"… Really?" the salvager asked in a monotone voice, half expecting this level of shrewdness from a Nopon.

"B-B-But if Tora completes artificial Blade, combat capabilities will be big help on mission!"

"Well, I'm sure it will… How much are we talking?"

"Oh… no more than 60,000 gold…?"

"60,000?! You want Gormott with that? I'm pretty tight on money myself, at the moment!"

"Calm down, Rex," Pyra said. "I think we owe Tora our help. If it's just money he needs, I may be able to assist."

The Driver's eyes went wide as he quickly scanned her up and down.

"Pyra, what do you mean by that…?" he asked nervously, assuming she was suggesting.

She then took off one of her earrings and held it out for them to see.

"This is a natural crystal. It should fetch around 60,000."

"You're able to sell that? Isn't that a part of you or something?"

"Not really. It's no trouble if we sell this."

"Well, if we sell that then that would probably be enough to hire a ship to get to Elysium."

"Meh meh?" Tora started. "What about Tora?"

"I know you mean well, but if we can get the money to go straight there then-"

"No, Rex," the Aegis said, pulling back her earring.

"… What?"

"I'm willing to sell this crystal to pay for Tora's project, but not to hire a ship now."

Rex blinked and looked at her incredulously.

"P-Pyra, you're not making any sense. You're the one who wants to go to Elysium in the first place! Why would you want to get involved with this when we have the chance to go straight there?"

"We don't know what we'll be up against. I'm sure that getting to Elysium won't be easy, and I think that if we got help it would be much easier."

"But still! We can just fight them off, and who cares if we don't make it there in one piece? I know I don't…"

"Well I do!" Pyra screamed, which made the other two back up. "You might not exactly care about your wellbeing, but I do! You're my Driver now and-"

"You only started to care about me once I did because you now have to rely on me," Rex interrupted her angrily.

"That's not true! I saved you before you became my Driver. That shows that I genuinely care about you, right?"

Rex turned away and sighed, "… Fine. Let's just get the parts for Tora's artificial Blade, but we won't need to sell your earring, Pyra."

"What? Really, it's not a problem if we-"

"End of discussion!"

The salvager then marched through the front door, leaving the Nopon and Aegis staring at him.

"Um… Is Rex-Rex feeling alright?" Tora nervously asked.

"Honestly… I'm not sure," the Blade responded.


	6. Jailbreak

**Author's Note:**

 **Well, it's been a while, and I'm sorry for that. I've been quite busy with a lot of stuff going on, but I now have a bit of free time to work on this story some more.**

 **I do have a general idea for what direction I'm planning on taking this story, but I'm mainly just writing it as I go along.**

 **Once again, if you have any question or comments, feel free to leave them in a review or send me a PM. Thank you!**

* * *

Eventually, they had collected the money and parts needed to finish the artificial Blade. After Tora had completed and activated his latest creation, which he named Poppi, they formed a plan to infiltrate the Army port and rescue Nia and Dromarch. Despite Rex's opposition, he helped them out. They searched the holding cells after they broke in, using a combination of Rex's cable anchor and Poppi's super strength. Even though the artificial Blade was on their side and appeared harmless, Rex didn't seem to trust her that much.

As they explored the lower levels, Poppi came to a stop in a corridor full of many doors.

"Masterpon," the artificial Blade began as she turned to the Nopon. "Poppi can feel there is a Blade in the vicinity."

Tora looked surprised before saying, "But how can Poppi tell that?"

"Unclear. Poppi feel other Blade like wave in air."

"It must be Dromarch!" Pyra exclaimed. "He must be in through one of these doors."

"And how do you propose we open these doors?" Rex asked with a hint of doubt.

Pyra frowned before she turned to face the nearest door and began to blast it with fire. The others jumped back in surprise.

"P-Pyra…! I thought that we were trying to keep this quiet!" he whispered loudly.

Thirty seconds later, the flames made a large hole in the door. As the smoke began to settle, they cautiously approached the door.

"I didn't hurt anyone, did I?" the Aegis asked nervously.

"Everyone check your eyebrows," Rex muttered.

"I'm sorry. It's hard to judge the power sometimes…"

"Pyra! Rex!" Dromarch called out, relieved to see them.

"Nice. On the first go," the boy remarked.

"Very good!" Tora cheered as he popped in to see the beast-form Blade.

"See, Masterpon? There was a Blade here," Poppi commented as she joined her creator.

"Miss Aegis… Forgive me, but who are they?" Dromarch asked.

"Temporary allies. We don't have much time. Do you know where Nia is?" Rex asked as the Blade walked through the ruined door.

Upon his description of them, Tora and Poppi looked at the salvager in confusion while his Blade frowned.

"O-Of course," Nia's Blade responded, sensing the tension. "I feel her presence."

"Then let's go," the salvager said.

"This way."

Dromarch led them further into the base. They quickly dispatched of any forces in their way. Tora and Poppi made quick work of the Ardainian soldiers with their swift and controlled movements, while Rex attacked them with incredibly ferocity. Her Driver's reckless attacks made her back away from him in fear of getting hit.

 _Does Rex even know how to fight properly? Maybe when we get out of this I could help him, and not just for that…_

While Pyra was lost in thought, Rex was not doing that much damage due to their separation. This caused him to swing the flaming sword even harder and even more uncontrolled. The group eventually came to a door which was guarded by two soldiers.

"No doubt about it, that's the place!" Dromarch exclaimed.

"Who are you people?!" one of the soldiers demanded as the group approached the door.

"They're the terrorist's friends!" the other announced while they readied their weapons.

Without slowing down, Rex shot out his suit's anchor and hit one of the soldiers in the foot. As the armored figure let out a muffled scream, he fell to the ground as his foot was being pulled towards the salvager. Before he could react and aim his weapon properly, Rex plunged the red sword hard into the soldier's chest, killing him instantly. The other soldier began to aim at the boy, but he was suddenly thrown aside by a massive drill hitting his stomach. He was then thrown against the wall and fell unconscious.

"Great…" Rex muttered, catching his breath. "Let's get her then."

He began to open the door to Nia's cell.

"Jin?" the Gormotti asked, half expecting the masked man to release her once more.

However, instead of a man with silver gray hair, a boy with brown hair in a partly-rusty salvager suit opened the door.

"There you are," Rex said plainly.

Somewhat taken aback, Nia said, "Rex, you…"

"My lady," Dromarch started, entering the room. "Apologies for my late arrival."

After pausing for a moment, his Driver said, "Don't mention it. I didn't think anyone was coming at all."

Pyra then quoted, "The second rule of the Salvager's Code says 'Always help those who help you.' Right, Rex?"

Rex stared at the Aegis in confusion.

"How did you know that?" he asked.

"When we were on that ship, I spoke with the others and they told me about the code," she responded.

The salvager blinked and then shook his head.

"Whatever. Let's just get out of here, quickly!"

"Rex-Rex!" Tora called out. "Tora has found escape route! Hurry hurry!"

"A Nopon?" Nia muttered with uncertainty.

"He has been of some assistance," Dromarch informed as the Nopon in question wove happily at the Gormotti.

"Uh, nice to meet ya."

"AHEM!" Rex cleared his throat. "We can get to introductions later. It's time to get moving!"

With slight hesitation in Tora's escape route, the group began to run. As Nia exited her cell, she looked down at the soldier on the ground with a large, charred hole in his chest. She gulped once she assumed who had done this to him. Then Nia hesitantly followed the group.

 _What's up with that guy?_

* * *

After several more encounters with Ardainian soldiers, which were dispatched quickly, they had finally come to a room with massive bay doors.

"Not much further to exit!" Tora announced, out of breath for having to fight and run more than he ever had in his life.

Suddenly, a voice called out, "Not so fast, my dear intruders!"

The Drivers and Blades stopped and looked around to see who it was. The bay doors opened, and two figures emerged. One was a larger man with a moustache and rather fancy clothes, marked with the sign of the Ardainian Empire. The other was a massive creature that appeared to be wearing armor and was wielding a hammer of sorts that it was using like a cane. This armored creature was easily twice the size of the man.

"Letting a terrorist from Torna out of my grasp would make me look very bad indeed," the man continued as he and the creature came to a halt. "Ah, that emerald Core Crystal! You must be the Aegis! Much as it pains me to admit it, it seems Mòrag was right on the money."

"You know who Pyra is?" Rex asked. "Are you trying to capture her too?"

"But of course. The most powerful Blade in all of history, with the power to rend Alrest asunder? Only a fool would know of that power and not seek to claim it! And I am no fool! Therefore, I will claim her as my own! You cannot argue with such logic!"

Rex looked away for a moment.

 _I guess that would make me a fool then._

"Flaw detected in final step of logic," Poppi stated.

"Sorry, pal, but you've done all the capturing you're gonna do today," Nia growled, stepping forward and crossing her arms.

"Such impertinence for a dirty terrorist," the man retorted.

"Let's go, everyone!" Rex announced as he readied himself.

The rest soon followed while the creature beside the man held the hammer in both hands. They charged just as the man pulled out a gun, no different from the ones the soldiers used. He fired at them, but it missed. Just as Rex began to take advantage of his surprise by landing a swift strike, the creature roared as its hammer began to glow at the end. The creature, which they assumed to be the man's Blade, swung its hammer at the boy, who managed to roll out of the way at the last second.

"We need to focus on the Driver!" Nia called out. "If we take him out, the Blade will go out as well."

Tora used his drill to push back the huge Blade. The others then surrounded the man and began to attack him. Nia managed to land a few of her ring blades on him as he fumbled to reload his weapon. From behind him, Rex swung his sword and began to slash away at the man. The salvager then planted his feet and began to spin his whole body around while holding the sword, which struck the man twice. Before anyone else could attack, the giant Blade swung its hammer and pushed the others back a bit. It then stood defensively in front of its Driver.

"That coward… He's just hiding behind his Blade," Rex commented.

"Does common sense elude you? A Blade can regenerate from any injury!" the man shouted back. "Whereas if I die, my Blade will return to a useless core!"

The boy raised an eyebrow and whispered to himself, "Really…?"

"So it's OK to use them as a living shield?" Nia asked angrily. "You weasel! Even if they can regenerate, that doesn't mean Blades don't feel pain!"

"Haha, how cute. The fleabag thinks we should care about Blades feelings," he cackled. "Heeheehee, I wonder if YOU can feel pain!"

The huge Blade raised its hammer and swung it onto the ground. It sent a shockwave through the ground and knocked everyone off their feet. The Driver fired his gun at them once more. Due to its spread, everyone was hit by the shot. All except for Tora and Poppi, the latter of which blocked the attack with her metallic body and protected her Driver.

They grimaced in pain. Rex and Pyra were hit where they were bandaged, Nia was hit in the arm and Dromarch was hit in his front left leg.

"Masterpon!" Poppi called out, Tora nodding and handing her his drill.

The artificial Blade left up and thrusted the drill forward. It landed right in the massive Blade's face and began to spin quickly. The others tried to stand up, wincing slightly where their wounds were.

"We just HAD to go back to save them…" Rex muttered angrily to his Blade.

Pyra frowned and groaned in pain slightly, "Rex…"

Meanwhile, Poppi thrusted the drill forward once more and sent the enemy Blade toppling over. Once it fell, its Driver jumped back in surprise.

"How…? A mangy fleabag and a bunch of stinking kids…" the man started to say. "My triumphant return… to Mor Ardain… with the Aegis…"

"You don't have your Blade to protect you now! What ya gonna do now?" Nia asked mockingly.

Before he could answer, Tora hopped up and smacked him in the face and knocked him out cold. The man fell to the ground hard. The others finally managed to stand up and were surprised by what Tora just did.

"Wow… Good arm, Tora," Rex commented, the Nopon beaming.

"That's what he gets for trying to execute Nia," Pyra commented.

"What? He was trying to take me back to Mor Ardain," Nia said, her eyes suddenly widening. "Rex, this is a trap!"

The boy blinked and shook his head.

"So… they weren't actually gonna execute you?" he asked.

"No time!" Tora cried. "Talk later, Rex-Rex! We should escape!"

"Masterpon is right. Chance of reinforcements very high," Poppi added.

"Oh bugger…" Rex muttered as he and the others began to run off.

After a few minutes of running, the exit was in view. They all felt slightly relieved, except for Rex. As they neared it, a large wall of blue flames erupted from the path ahead.

"These flames again!" Pyra announced, her and everyone else coming to a halt.

The salvager gulped.

 _It's her…_

As if on cue, two silhouetted figures emerged from the flames. One appeared to be Brighid, and the other one was wearing a long military jacket with a helmet which covered their face slightly. This military person wielded the same weapons that the shapely, blue Blade had before.

"She's with her Driver too, this time!" Nia said.

"That's Mòrag, the Flamebringer!" Dromarch informed the group. "Special Inquisitor Mòrag of Mor Ardain. The most powerful Driver in the Empire… and wielder of Brighid, the most powerful Blade."

Rex began to sweat. He had heard of this person before. This person was responsible for putting other salvagers, who had missions that took a turn for the worse, behind bars.

 _If she locked up guys for learning Mor Ardain secrets, then what is she gonna do to a guy who killed a captain…?_

"Well… We're fucked…" Rex muttered to himself.


	7. Update: Story

Hi everyone!

Some of you might be wondering, or did wonder, what happened to this story. There are two main reasons for this: not much spare time and lack of motivation.

I started writing this story when I had quite a lot of spare time and was around the time when I did almost daily uploads for my other big story, Crazy Noisy Bizarre Town. Not too long after the first two or three chapters of Pessimist, I had a lot more work to do needed my full attention. About two months later, I had even more free time than I had before. The reason this wasn't updated much was because of the second reason, lack of motivation.

Like with my first big story, the source was fresh in my mind and I just put my idea down on paper. Although when I did eventually get time to write more, XC2 wasn't really on my mind. I mainly had an idea for how pessimist Rex would react for only a few scenes. Since my first story was essentially a retelling of one of the sources but with elements of the other mixed in, I was planning on writing this story in a similar way. So the plan went from just a few scenes to retell the whole story of XC2 with Rex as a pessimist to try and make it a bit more worth investing in.

Being only 6 chapters in and they haven't even left Gormott, this story was going to take a very long time to finish. I spent quite a bit of time focusing on trying to flush out Rex's pessimistic character. I was also planning on him being depressed, and I was trying to make his depression reflective of my own. But right now… I can't really do that as easily because I'm no longer depressed.

I'm sorry if any of you were expecting this story to be a long and interesting adventure. I have mostly lost interest in XC2, but I would like to at least give this story an ending. I'm not sure when I'll next update to add another chapter. Since I don't want to write a really long story for something I don't really care about anymore, I'll probably turn the rest of the chapters into oneshot events. Instead of dragging this out scene-for-scene, it'll skip to one of the next major events and still involve pessimist Rex and his negative views. I was going to make him change as he progressed in the story, like some genuine character development, and I do still plan on that happening. Unless it's a really pivotal moment in the story, I probably won't even write some of the fight scenes because XC2's fighting mechanics it a bit too fast-paced to keep up descriptively.

Not much will change about the direction I want to take this story, but I'm just letting you guys know that it won't be in as great detail as I initially had in mind. Expect to see scenes like: Pyra and Rex by the fire, Zeke appears, Mythra appears and a few more. I won't be doing every pivotal scene so you should expect about 10 more chapters of these character focused oneshots.

I do still plan on continuing to write, but have a couple other story ideas that I have much more motivation to write. While this story won't be updated as frequently as I would have liked, I will also be working on other stories (not about XC2).

Thank you so much for reading! I'm glad that some of you have enjoyed Pessimist so far! I had a lot of fun writing this initially, but I have kind of lost the motivation to continue with the frequency I was expecting. Sorry to let you guys down.

-electron1877


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